Connecting Schools With Great Fundraising Ideas.

Do you have a green thumb? There are many people who enjoy having flowers beautify the front or back yard of their homes. Some varieties require flower blub planting in the fall so that flowers grow in the spring. Thanks to this fall flower bulbs make a great fundraiser!

Here are three companies that provide fall bulb fundraisers:

• Wow Fundraising offers a multi-page full color catalog with a wide variety of fall flower bulbs. Your group gets free delivery with a 75 Item Minimum. Items will be packed for each seller. This fundraiser earns your group 35-58% profit.
• Colorblends is a family owned company that has been providing high quality flower bulbs for almost 100 years. They offer a color flyer with the eight top-selling tulips, daffodils and crocuses. There’s no minimum order, no upfront fees. You can either sell from the flyers or buy bulbs in advance to sell at a fair or fundraising event. Either way, you earn 45% to 50% on everything you sell.
• Dutch Mill Bulbs even provides a guide for where and when to plant its fall bulb varieties. There are no up-front costs, no shipping costs and 50% profit to the school group.

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Why are carnivals so popular? Because they are just plain FUN!

Here’s what one blogger, Brandy, said about her kids school spring carnival:

The boys had the first Spring Carnival at their school yesterday. Hopefully the school started an annual FUN fundraiser. They really enjoyed themselves. They got to play games, see their friends, and even see their cousin. I have a few pictures (couldn’t hardly take any because I was bombared with going to play the games, prizes, and keeping up with Nathan). Each grade level made a basket of a certain theme, for a silent auction of stuff that the kids donated. Jordan’s class did a baby basket and Austin’s class did a garden basket. I heard that the scrap book basket’s highest bid was $1,200 but not sure how true that is.

I agree 100% — School carnivals are just plain fun! Kids like all the games, getting to play them and winning prizes of course! Most school carnivals have games for every age level so all the kids can join in the fun. Plus it is good for there to be some fun things for parents like auctions which are also fundraisers.

Check out our school carnival ideas page for school carnival games and supplies.

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Curious what other school PTA groups are planning for fall? Here’s a few schools that already planned some great fundraising events for fall:

Georgetown MA PTA is planning two family dances, Meadow Farms gift wrap, Genevieve gift wrap and a silent and live auction.

Grande Park Elementary PTA in Plainfield IL is holding a Back to School bash. They’re also planning their annual fall barbecue.

Hancock Elementary School PTA in Hancock, MD has a corporate sponsorship program to help fund their new playground.

Nesaquake Middle School PTA in Saint James, NY will be offering Entertainment Books as their fundraiser. They are also planning the sale of popular spiritwear clothing and other spirit items.

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A couple weeks back I wrote a post called Schools Getting Health-Wise, Need Healthy Fundraisers. The issue of wellness rules in school and finding healthy fundraisers is an ongoing topic. In fact more schools than ever will be looking for fundraisers that comply to school wellness rules.

In Fairbanks, Alaska the school board put in a new wellness policy that started in the 06-07 school year. So groups within the district had to find some new ways to fundraise without candy or chocolate. Some groups decided on healthy foods such as salads and bottled waters. Others sold candles, other items or held events or contests. Many were quite successful.

However, vending machines without candy bars apparently were not so exciting for students. Snack machines, which in past years supplied over $250,000 in revenue for the district saw a drop by 25% in 2006-2007.

The district isnt’ panicking, Sather said. Yes, revenues are down, but, again, she expects they will pick up in the coming years especially as snack companies respond to the growing national trend and provide a wider variety of healthier options.

(From the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner)

I agree it’s definitely not time to panic! There will likely be even more new foods not only available for the vending machine program but for direct sale fundraisers as well.  Popcorn is one such fundraiser that is currently available. It will be interesting to see what others come out in the coming months and years!

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Math and science teachers across the country are finding unique ways for raising money to bring education technology into their classrooms, including bake sales, Math-a-thons, recycling printer cartridges and even letting students throw “Pi” in their faces.

Texas Instruments (TI) learned about these creative fundraising ideas from a survey of nearly 60,000 teachers in spring 2007, as part of an effort to help educators find new and unique sources of funding. The company received so many responses that it has turned the one-time survey into a permanent online idea exchange called Technology in Hand, which supplements TI’s online interactive funding and grant resources.

In addition to Technology in Hand, TI provides funding resources, such as a grant writing program to help teachers identify and apply for government and third-party educational technology grants. Educators can learn where and how to apply, tips on applications and writing resources at http://education.ti.com, during T3 (Teachers Teaching with Technology) Professional Development grant writing workshops, or through TI’s trained
education technology consultants.

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If your school is burnt out on holding bake sales, iBakeSale.com could be an alternative to consider. With iBakeSale.com a school or organization registers with them. Then invite people to shop at merchants signed up with iBake Sale.com (they have hundreds of them — including Macy’s, PetSmart, Linens n’ Things, Netflix, Walmart and Avon). By making a purchase, a percentage is donated to the organization the buyer has selected, or they can choose to get cash-back on their credit card.

According to the website, iBakeSale.com was founded in 2007 with the vision to “make local community fundraising easy and rewarding.”

This program can not only be used by schools, but by sports teams, religious organizations and other community organizations that are looking to raise funds. Organizations do not have to just be 501(C)(3) charity groups with tax-exempt status. There is also no fee to join iBakeSale.com, and there is also no fee for shoppers.

With iBakeSale.com your fundraising does not have to be limited to just one weekend or one school afternoon, but it can be done during the entire school year. How much can you expect to raise? iBakeSale.com states that “Any group can expect to raise approximately $100 annually per member.”

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General Mills Box Tops for Education is sponsoring a “Shop for Education Week” from August 27 to September 3, 2007. During this time you can earn more box tops credit for your designated school when you shop online at their Box Tops Marketplace.

Find out more about this special offer

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